Bright is a firstborn child to a young mother. He is often taken care of by his grandmother as Bright's mom continues with school. She has moved to a closer school so that she can be near to home and breastfeed her baby during the day. Both Bright and his mother live with his grandparents, who are all farmers.
His grandparents get their income from the sales of farm produce like rice, cassava, groundnuts and maize. They use this income for their upkeep and for paying school fees for Bright's mother, but they cannot manage to pay for the surgery cost that Bright needs so are seeking support. Together, they live in a three bedroomed house without water and electricity.
Bright was well until after two weeks of birth when the grandmother noted a swelling on the right inguinal region that made them visit a clinic for support, where they were referred to a district hospital for further management. There, his mother was told to go back home and to keep a closer eye on his condition and was assured that this swelling might stop as the child grows.
There has not been any change apart from the worsening of Bright's pain, which is hard for both him and his mother - often having both of them in tears. Bright's grandmother is responsible for calming the situation by trying to lie the baby down to reduce the swelling. Bright's grandmother has had many more visits to the hospital with Bright but to no avail. The illness has affected the family’s daily activities, making his mother miss many classes due to her baby’s illness. On the same note, his grandmother's farm work has been affected since only the grandfather is doing the work instead of the three of them.
Last month, both granny and Bright's mother took Bright to the hospital, and by chance, they met the surgeon from our medical partner's care center Partners in Hope Medical Center who confirmed the diagnosis of inguinal hernia, and his grandmother was notified of the need for a surgical intervention called a hernia repair. His mother was happy to hear about the potential operation for her son finally. Due to their financial challenges, Bright was referred to our medical partner's Watsi program, where after assessments, Bright was eligible. His grandmother was glad and freely committed to contribute what they could: MWK 5, 000 ($4.89).
Bright's mother believes the surgical operation will help her child get back to being healthy and that will help her concentrate on her education without disturbances. She believes Bright will be well again soon and they can all go back to being happy!
Bright's mother joyfully said, “thank you, sponsors, for supporting us, looking forward to a brighter future for my son.”